Abstract
In the Czech Republic there is a lack of systematic liaison among relevant entities involved in the prevention of risk behaviour aimed at children and adolescents. The reasons for such a state include the inconsistent assignment of responsibilities for prevention, insufficient funding of entities engaging in prevention activities, limited human resources, the absence of a uniform model of undergraduate and graduate education, and the underestimation of the importance of prevention in general.
Aim of the paper is to present the entities which we have involved in the development of community-based prevention as part of the project "COPERISK". The non-probability sampling method was used to obtain professional entities pertaining to the risk behaviours under consideration.
In addition, we identified and defined the agents which play the key role in the prevention of risk behaviour and can contribute to the strengthening of children's and adolescents' mental health. In the Czech setting, effective and comprehensive systems of community-based prevention are rare.
The establishment of a network comprising all the relevant stakeholders is made difficult by the specific nature of the risk behaviours under study, i.e. addictions, self-harm, and eating disorders. In the Czech Republic community-based prevention has no tradition; it is a relatively new element in prevention efforts and relevant entities are not prepared to engage in the activities it should involve.
Another factor which complicates their engagement is their failure to fully recognise the need for such a network and their own role in the community.